The Work of Zion: An Analysis of an African Zionist Ritual

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Abstract
Opening Paragraph: African Zionist ritual is for the patient. The ambiguity is intended. Not only is Zionist ritual a healing rite but it makes demands on the patience of the participant. In the South African township of Kwa Mashu where African Zionists meet in small groups of from six to thirty people called Ibandla, i.e. a band, the meeting which takes place in one small room normally lasts for four or five of the hottest hours of the day. This is usually a Sunday. An occasional variant is to begin the meeting the previous midnight and continue into daylight. In either case, the most palpable feature of the meeting is its lack of urgency. It seems to meander indulgently from one unmanaged moment to the next and its atmosphere of unplanned relaxation leaves one with no expectation that it will ever end. The whole tenor of the meeting is therefore alien to the imposition of an organizational framework based on the division of activities into strict time intervals. Nevertheless time does intrude. In the course of the meeting the minister will more than once consult a watch ostentatiously placed before him on the table or he will interrupt activities publicly to enquire the time. Despite the general trend, therefore, some attempt is being made to measure and control the use of time. This is one way of stating the basic paradox of a Zionist meeting; despite an absence of overall control there are visible signs that control is somehow being exercised.

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